Bundle-wrapping apparatus

ABSTRACT

A bundle-wrapping device is disclosed for wrapping paper about a bundle moving along a conveyor in the direction of movement of the bundle. The wrapping roller for wrapping the paper about the bundle is activated directly by the bundle moving along the conveyor.

United States Patent Inventor Appl. No.

Filed Patented Assignee George H; Sundin Duluth, Minn. 863,299

Oct. 2, 1969 Dec. 28, 1971 Conwed Corporation St. Paul, Minn.

BUNDLE-WRAPPING APPARATUS 7 Claims, 13 Drawing Figs.

U.S. Cl 53/209, 53/198 R lnt.Cl ..B65b 11/10, B65b 49/ l 6 Field ofSearch 53/ l 37,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,726,783 l2/l955 Erickson156/486 3,383,832 5/1968 Grant et al... 53/209 3,491,657 l/l970 Feigel53/196 X Primary Examiner-Theron E. Condon Assistant Examiner- NeilAbrams Attorney-Gunnar A. Gustafson ABSTRACT: A bundle-wrapping deviceis disclosed for wrapping paper about a bundle moving along a conveyorin the direction of movement of the bundle. The wrapping roller forwrapping the paper about the bundle is activated directly by the bundlemoving along the conveyor.

PATENTED neme i SHEET 1 BF 4 N i M11 INVENTOR GEORGE H. SUND/N BY In. I

HIS arromvzr PATENTEUBEBZB :97:- 3 6 2399] saw 2 BF 4 INVENTOR.

HIS ATTORNEY Pmmeunmewn 3.629991 SHEET 3 or 4 INVENTOR.

ORGE' H. .SUNDl/V HIS A TTORNEY PATENlEnnfiazeml 3,529,991

SHEET u (1F 4 INVENTOR.

GEORGE H SUND/N HIS ATTORNEY BUNDLE-WRAPPING APPARATUS A number ofdevices, usually referred to as girth wrappers, have been designed andbuilt for wrapping paper about a bundle in one direction.

Prior art devices have required expensive timing mechanisms, arms, cams,and the like which have made such devices extremely expensive.

This invention is directed to a girth-wrapping machine in which thepower provided by the conveyor itself and the bundle moving along theconveyor serves to activate the actual wrapping mechanism thusdecreasing the power requirements and greatly decreasing the cost ofsuch apparatus generally.

One object of the invention is to provide a girth wrapping machine thatis simple to construct and economical to maintam.

Another object of the invention is to provide a girth wrapper which willoperate to wrap paper around a bundle from a roll of paper.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a girth wrapper thatrequires the minimum amount of moving parts while at the same timeproviding for accurate wrapping of the bundle.

These and other objects of the invention will be apparent to thoseskilled in the art from the following specification and drawings inwhich:

FIG. 1 is a schematic showing of the sequence of steps involved inwrapping a bundle,

FIG. 2 is a view from the side and from somewhat above the the infeedend of the apparatus of this invention,

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the apparatus of the invention, and

FIGS. 4 through 13 shows the sequence of operation of the device.

As shown in FIG. 1, a bundle of generally flat and rectangular shapemoves through successive stations 12, 14, 16, 18 and 20. At station 12the bundle 10 is fed onto the line for wrapping and moves along tostation 14 where wrapping paper 22 from a roll 24 thereof is fed beneaththe bundle 10 and between it and the conveyor 26. From this station thebundle 10 moves to the station 16 where the wrapping paper 22 is cutfrom the roll as by a knife schematically shown at 28. Also at station16 the adhesive 32 is applied to the leading edge of the paper 22 by anysuitable means such as nozzle 30. The bundle 10 with the wrapping paper22 thereunder is then fed to station 18 by suitable conveyors where thepaper 22 is wrapped around the bundle in one direction, i.e. thedirection of movement of the bundle. The bundle 10 is then moved to thestation 20 where the ends of the paper are suitably folded and sealed.The end folding as indicated schematically at station 20 is accomplishedby known commercially available devices. This invention is directed toapparatus for the station 18 where the wrapping paper 22 is folded aboutthe bundle 10 and sealed by the adhesive 32 previously applied.

The infeed end of the apparatus of the invention for wrapping the paper22 around the bundle 10 at station 18 is shown in FIG. 2. As shown inFIG. 2 the apparatus at station 18 is fed with bundles from the conveyor34 of the station 16. The girth wrapper of the invention comprises aframe 36 supporting at its upper end two series of spaced driven rollerconveyors 38 and 42, the tops of which are generally in the plane of theconveyor 34 from station 16. The rollers 38 and 42 are suitably drivenby a motive source such as an electric motor 42 through reduction gears44 and a chain drive 46 (see FIG. 3). The centrally located conveyor 40is driven by suitable means such as a motor (not shown) to move articlesthereupon in the same direction as such articles are urged by therollers 33 and 42. The conveyor 40 has spaced lugs 48 for movingarticles along the conveyor (from right to left) in FIGS. 2 and 3Pivoted at 50 to a portion of the lower end of the frame is a short link52 which has pivoted at 54 a longer upstanding arm 60. On the oppositeside of the machine a line 52' is pivoted at 50 to a lower portion ofthe frame and has pivoted thereto at 54 an arm 60' extending upwardlyandrearwardly. The link 52 and arm 60 are parallel respectively withlink 52' and arm 60'.

Intermediate their ends the arm 60 and 60' have pivoted thereto at 62and 62' respectively two forwardly and upwardly projecting arms 64 and64 respectively. At their upper ends the arms 64, 64' have journaledthereacross a roller 66. At its ends the roller 66 rests upon upwardlyand forwardly inclined cam tracks 68 and 68'. Retainer members 70 and70' hold the roller 66 downwardly in contact with the cam tracks 68 and68 respectively.

The arms 60 and 60' are held by gravity against stop members 72 and 72'respectively. At their upper ends the arms 60, 60 have journaledtherebetween a roller 74 extending transversely of the machine betweenthe arms 60 and 60'.

The shaft 76 to which the roller 74 is fixed extends through and isjournaled in the arms 60 and 60. The shaft 76 extends well beyond thearm 60 and has fixed thereto a ratchet gear 78. Slideably mountedlongitudinally of the arm 60 is a ratchet-engaging stop 80. Theratchet-engaging stop 80 lies against the arm 60 and is held in place inlongitudinal sliding relationship by means of three straplike attachmentbrackets 82. The ratchet-engaging stop 80 has secured thereto at 84 aspring 86 which has the other end thereof secured upwardly therefrom tothe arm 60 at 88. The tension of the spring 86 tends to urge the ratchetstop 80 in the direction of the arrow 90. The lower end of the ratchetstop 80 has a cam follower roller 92 engaged with a cam track 94. Thecam track 94 is secured at 96 to the short link 52 as by welding orother suitable means. In the at-rest position of the device as shown inFIGS. 2 and 3 the cam follower 92 is caused by the shape of the camtrack 94 to hold the ratchet stop 80 downwardly such that the upper end100 of the ratchet stop 80 is out of engagement with the ratchet gear78. Upon actuation of the device as hereinafter described, the cam track94 will permit the ratchet stop 80 to move upwardly in the direction ofthe arrow thus engaging the end of the ratchet stop 80 in the ratchetgear 78 to prevent rotation of the roller 74 in one direction.Engagement of the ratchet stop end 100 with the ratchet gear 78 willpermit rotation of the gear 78, the shaft 76 and the roller 74 only inthe clockwise direction (as viewed in FIG. 3).

Between the am 60 and the frame 36 is a downwardly and rearwardlyextending cam track 102. On the opposite side of the machine a similarcam track 102' extends parallel to the cam track 102 downwardly andrearwardly of the machine between the arm 60' and the frame 36.Rotatably mounted to the inside of the upstanding arm 60 is a camfollower roller 104 (viewed in FIG. 3 through the broken-away portion ofarm 60) which bears against the top surface of the cam track 102 whenthe apparatus is in its at-rest position as shown in FIG. 3. A similarroller 104' (viewed in FIG. 3 through a broken-away portion of the frame36) is rotatably mounted to the inside of the upstanding arm 60' to bearagainst the cam track 102'. The rearward ends of cam tracks 102 and 102'fixedly support the stops 72, 72 respectively.

At the forward (downstream) end of the machine are two L- shaped levers106 and 106' pivoted respectively at 108 and 108'. At the upper ends112, 112 of the short arms of the L- shaped levers 106, 106' isjournaleda roller 110. At the juncture of the two arms of the L-shaped levers 106and 106' are hung weights I14 and 114.

A narrow air outlet or air slice 116 (see FIG. 2) extends the width ofthe machine between the roller 74 and the end of the infeed conveyor 34from station 16. The air slice 116 is connected by a suitable tube 118to a blower fan 124. Another air slice comprises two outlets 120 and120. The outlet 120 is positioned in the series of conveyor rollers 38immediately preceding the roller 66 and the other outlet 120' ispositioned within the conveyor roller series 42 immediately ahead of thesame roller 66. The air slice 120-120 is connected by a tube 122 to theblower fan 124.

OPERATION In operation the motor 42 is energized to operate the twoseries of conveyor rollers 38 and 42 continuously in a counterclockwisedirection as the ends are viewed in FIGS. 2 and 3, thus to move a bundlethereupon from right to left. The blower fan 124 is operatedcontinuously to cause air to issue from the air slice 116 and the airslice 120- 120'.

The conveyor 40 with the bundle-engaging and pushing lugs 48 thereon isoperated to move the bundle from right to left as viewed in FIGS. 2 and3 but is timed by a suitable mechanism, not shown, to push the bundle 10through the device in a timed sequence with the succeeding end-sealingmachine at station 20. That is to say that only when a bundle fromstation 16 can be received in station 20 will the conveyor 40 operate tomove a bundle 10 through the girth-wrapping machine of station 18.

As shown in FIG. 4, the bundle l and the paper 22 are moved alongconveyor 34 from station 16. The paper 22 has an adhesive line 32sprayed along the leading edge thereof. As the paper reaches the airslice 116, the air issuing therefrom lifts the paper to permit it toride over the roller 74. The paper 22 then will lay upon the series ofconveyors 38, 40, and 42 and will move along with bundle under theurging of conveyors 38 and 42. The conveyor 40 is not operated at thistime, it being stopped with all lugs 48 positioned out of the path ofthe bundle. As the leading edge of the paper 22 reaches the air slicell20', the air slice l20-l20' lifts the leading edge of the paper 22over the roller 66 so that it rests above and upon the roller 66 asshown in FIG. 5. The paper 22 and the bundle l0 thereon can thencontinue to move forwardly as moved by the roller conveyors 38 and 42until the forward edge of the bundle 10 comes up against and abuts theroller 66 with the paper 22 pinched therebetween as best shown in FIG.6. It will be appreciated that the various parts are so dimensioned asto permit the roller 66 to be abutted by the leading end 10' of thebundle l0 slightly above the bottom of the bundle.

When the leading end 10 of the bundle comes up against the roller 66with the paper 22 pinched therebetween the weight of the bundle-wrappingapparatus including the arms 60, 60' and the roller 74 as well as theassociated parts will hold the bundle 10 against further forwardmovement and as such the rollers of the roller conveyors 38 and 42 willskid beneath and against the wrapping paper 22.

When the end-sealing apparatus at station 20 is capable of receivinganother bundle 10 the conveyor 40 is automatically energized by means ofa motor, switches, relays, and the like (not shown) to bring the drivinglug 48 of the conveyor 40 upwardly from the rear of the bundle andagainst the rearward end 10" of the bundle with the paper 22therebetween as shown in FIG. 7. Further forward movement of theconveyor 40 and in particular of the lug 48 thereon forces the bundle l0forwardly against the roller 66 with sufficient force to cause theroller 66 to begin to travel forwardly and upwardly along the camtracks, 68, 68'. As the roller 66 moves along the cam tracks 68 and 68,the roller will move vertically upwardly along the leading end 10 of thebundle pressing the paper 22 tightly upwardly against the leading end10' of the bundle. It will be appreciated that the roller 66 has arubber surface thereon and may be a continuous rubber roller or aplurality of rubber discs of like diameter spaced along a central metalshaft. Additionally, as the roller 66 moves forwardly: and upwardlyalong the tracks 68, 68' it pulls the arms 60, 60' after it by virtue ofits connection to arms 60 and 60 through the rods 64, 64' at pivots 62,62.

It should be pointed out here that forward movement of the arms 60, 60under the urging of the rods 64, 64' pulled by the roller 66 lifts thecam followers 104, 104 out of engagement with the cam tracks 102, I02soon after the forward movement of the arms 60,60 begins to take place(see FIG. 7). Accordingly, during the forward movement of the arms 60,60 the rollers 104, 104' do not engage the cam tracks I02, 102' andserve no purpose.

Because of the relative dimensions and pivot points of the arms 60, 60'compared with the rods 64, 64 it will be appreciated that the speed ofmovement of the roller 74 will be considerably greater than the movementof the roller 66.

In this way the roller 74 catches up with the roller 66 as indicated inFIG. 7-12. As shown in FIG. 7 the roller 66 has moved but slightly alongthe cam tracks 68, 68' and yet the roller 74 has already moved out ofits at-rest position and is coming into contact with the upper part ofthe rearward end 10" of the bundle above the lug 48 with the paper 22pressed against the end [0" by roller 74. It will be appreciated thatthe roller 74 may, like roller 66, be a continuous rubber roller or mayhave a series of rubber discs mounted upon the metal shaft 76.

Further movement of the bundle 10 under the force applied thereto by thelug 48 continues to move the roller 66 further along and up the camtracks 68, 68 and moves the roller 74 upwardly along the rearward end10" of the bundle 10 as shown in FIG. 8. As shown in FIG. 8, at aboutthe time that the roller 74 comes into engagement with the top rearwardcorner of end 10 of the bundle with the paper 22 nipped therebetween,the cam follower 92 has moved along the cam track 94 sufficient topermit the spring 86 to move the ratchet stop upwardly thus engaging theratchet stop end I00 with the ratchet gear 78 and preventing rotarymovement of the roller 74 in one direction. In this way the roller 74skids along the paper 22 pressing the same tightly against the bundle10.

It will be appreciated that as the arms 60, 60' are caused to move bythe roller 66, the arms in effect lengthen since there is a double pivot(one at 50-50 and another at 54-54') so that the links 52, 52' are addedto the length of the arms 60, 60'. This extension of the arms 60, 60'takes place at various points in the cycle depending upon the size ofthe bundle being wrapped and the lengths of the arms 60, 60' and links52, 52. As shown herein the extension does not take place until FIG. 8.This double pivot and added link arrangement also permits the roller 74to follow a straight path upward along the rearward end 10" and then astraight path along the flat upper surface of the bundle 10 rather thandescribing an are.

It will be seen from FIGS. 9 and 10 that as the roller 66 movesforwardly and upwardly along the cam tracks 68, 68' under the urging ofthe bundle l0 and the lug 48, the roller 74 continues to skid along thepaper upwardly over the upper corner of the rearward end 10" and is thenmoved forwardly along the top surface of the bundle l0.

Continued movement of the bundle 10 through the device continues to movethe roller 66 up the cam tracks 68, 68 and continues to move the roller74 forwardly at a greater rate than the forward movement of the roller66. As previously indicated, the roller 74 cannot roll along the surfaceof the paper 22 by virtue of the engagement of the ratchet stop end withthe ratchet gear 78.

Continued movement leads to the position shown in FIG. 11. In FIG. 11the roller 66 has now moved vertically completely along the verticalextent of the forward end 10' of the bundle and has reached the upperleading corner of the bundle 10. At this point the roller 74 hascompleted smoothing the trailing edge of the paper 22 and forwardmovement of the rollers 66 and 74 ceases. At this point the bundle l0begins to move beneath the roller 66 thus smoothing the leading edge ofthe paper 22 onto the trailing edge thereof and sealing the same alongthe glue line 32 (see FIG. 12). At this time the roller 74 may rotate(clockwise as viewed in the figures) since the ratchet will permitrotation in that direction. At this point the bundle passes beneath theweighted roller which is urged downwardly by the weights Il41l4' andthus presses firmly upon the paper 22 over the glue line 32.

After the bundle 10 has passed out of engagement with the rollers 74 and66 (see FIG. 13) the entire mechanism including the roller 66, theroller 74, the arms 60, 60' and the other parts attached thereto fall bygravity vertically downwardly such that the cam follower rollers I04,104' engage the cam tracks I02, 102'. This engagement causes theapparatus to be guided rearwardly and downwardly under the force ofgravity until the same returns to its original position as shown in FIG.2 with the arms 60, 60' in engagement with the stops 72, 72'.

It will be appreciated that bundles of varying thickness can beaccommodated so long as their thickness does not exceed the verticalextent of the cam tracks 68, 68'. Additionally, various adjustments canbe provided in the apparatus including adjustments for the lengths ofthe arms 60, 60' as well as the lengths of the rods 64, 64 and thelengths of the links 52, 52. These various adjustments are not shownsince they will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art. Oneadjustment for the roller 110 is shown as comprising a bolt 126threadedly engaged in a threaded opening in a laterally extending lug128 on the frame. The lower end of the bolt 126 engages the rearward endof the L-shaped arm 106 to limit the downward movement of the roller 110about the pivot 108. This adjustment is so made as to insure that thelowest surface of the roller 110 when at rest (as shown in FIG. 3) isslightly below the top edge of the bundle 10. When the bundle movesbeneath the roller 110 the roller will be moved upwardly and will rollover the top of the bundle as the bundle moves therebeneath.

As indicated above, after the bundle l0 exits from the girthwrappingmachine it enters into station where the ends of the paper are folded inand glued in place by a known mechanism.

The cam 94 is so shaped that in the at-rest position of the apparatus asshown in FIGS. 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 the stop 100 is out of engagement withthe ratchet gear 78 thus permitting the roller 74 to rotate in eitherdirection at this time. This is necessary since in the at-rest positionas shown in FIGS. 2 through 6 the roller 74 serves to support a bundleentering the apparatus from station 16 and as such must be free to turncounterclockwise as viewed in the figures. Additionally, when the roller74 first contacts the back end 10" of the bundle (between FIG. 7 andFIG. 8) it must be free to rotate upward along the back end 10" of thebundle or it would tend to lift the back end 10" off of the conveyors38, 40, and 42. As indicated above, ideally the ratchet stop 100 shouldengage the ratchet gear 78 just immediately before the roller 74 reachesthe upper rear comer of the bundle as indicated in FIG. 8. This will notlift the bundle, but will insure a tight smooth pull of the paper 22 upand over the upper rear corner. As indicated, the cam track 94 is shapedto accomplish this timed engagement and disengagement of the stop 100with the gear 78.

I claim:

I. An apparatus for wrapping a sheet about an article moving in onedirection comprising a frame, a conveyor on said frame for movingarticles in said one direction, a first pair of links pivoted to saidframe, a second pair of links respectively pivoted to said first pair oflinks, a first sheet smoothing and wrapping roller extending betweensaid second pair of links and journaled therein for smoothing andwrapping a wrapping sheet over an article, a pair of arms pivotedrespectively to aid second pair of links intermediate the ends thereof,a second roller extending between said pair of arms and journaledtherein for wrapping said sheet over said article toward said firstroller, said second roller being positioned such as to be contacted byan article being conveyed by said conveyor.

2. An apparatus for wrapping a sheet about an article moving in onedirection comprising a frame, a conveyor on said frame for movingarticles forwardly in said one direction, a first pair of links pivotedto said frame, a second pair of links respectively pivoted to said firstpair of links, a first roller extending between said second pair oflinks and journaled therein for rolling a wrapping sheet up and over anarticle, a pair of arms pivoted respectively to said second pair oflinks intermediate the ends thereof, a second roller extending betweensaid pair of arms and journaled therein, said second roller beingpositioned such as to be contacted and moved forwardly by an articlebeing conveyed by said conveyor, means for moving said second rollerover a surface of an article being conveyed as said roller IS bemg movedforwardly under the urging of an article being conveyed to wrap saidwrapping sheet over said surface of the article toward said firstroller.

3. An apparatus for wrapping a sheet about an article moving in onedirection comprising a frame, a first arm pivoted at one end to saidframe, a second arm pivoted at one end to said first arm intermediatethe length of said first arm, a first sheetsmoothing and wrapping rollerjournaled in the other end of said first arm for wrapping a sheet oversaid article, and a second sheet-smoothing and wrapping roller journaledin the other end of said second arm for wrapping said sheet over saidarticle in a direction opposed to that of said first roller.

4. An apparatus for wrapping a sheet about an article moving in onedirection comprising a frame, a conveyor on said frame for movingarticles forwardly in said one direction, a first pair of arms pivotedto said frame, a second pair of arms pivoted respectively to said firstpair of arms intermediate the ends of said first pair of arms, a firstwrapping roller extending between said first pair of arms and journaledtherein for wrapping a sheet over said article, a second rollerextending between said second pair of arms and journaled therein forwrapping a sheet over said article in a direction toward said firstroller, said second roller being positioned such as to be contacted byan article being conveyed by said conveyor whereby forward movement ofsaid article causes movement of said rollers over the surface of saidarticle, and means to alter the length of said first pair of arms duringoperation of the apparatus whereby said first roller follows the contourof said article during the wrapping thereof.

5. The apparatus of claim 3 including means to prevent rotation of saidfirst roller in at least one direction during at least a portion of theoperation of the apparatus.

6. The apparatus of claim 3 in which said first arm comprises two linkspivoted to each other.

7. The apparatus of claim 4 in which said means comprises said firstpair of arms being jointed intermediate their length.

* 1i i 8 l

1. An apparatus for wrapping a sheet about an article moving in onedirection comprising a frame, a conveyor on said frame for movingarticles in said one direction, a first pair of links pivoted to saidframe, a second pair of links respectively pivoted to said first pair oflinks, a first sheet smoothing and wrapping roller extending betweensaid second pair of links and journaled therein for smoothing andwrapping a wrapping sheet over an article, a pair of arms pivotedrespectively to aid second pair of links intermediate the ends thereof,a second roller extending between said pair of arms and journaledtherein for wrapping said sheet over said article toward said firstroller, said second roller being positioned such as to be contacted byan article being conveyed by said conveyor.
 2. An apparatus for wrappinga sheet about an article moving in one direction comprising a frame, aconveyor on said frame for moving articles forwardly in said onedirection, a first pair of links pivoted to said frame, a second pair oflinks respectively pivoted to said first pair of links, a first rollerextending between said second pair of links and journaled therein forrolling a wrapping sheet up and over an article, a pair of arms pivotedrespectively to said second pair of links intermediate the ends thereof,a second roller extending between said pair of arms and journaledtherein, said second roller being positioned such as to be contacted andmoved forwardly by an article being conveyed by said conveyor, means formoving said second roller over a surface of an article being conveyed assaid roller is being moved forwardly under the urging of an articlebeing conveyed to wrap said wrapping sheet over said surface of thearticle toward said first roller.
 3. An apparatus for wrapping a sheetabout an article moving in one direction comprising a frame, a first armpivoted at one end to said frame, a second arm pivoted at one end tosaid first arm intermediate the length of said first arm, a firstsheet-smoothing and wrapping roller journaled in the other end of saidfirst arm for wrapping a sheet over said article, and a secondsheet-smoothing and wrapping roller journaled in the other end of saidsecond arm for wrapping said sheet over said article in a directionopposed to that of said first roller.
 4. An apparatus for wrapping asheet about an article moving in one direction comprising a frame, aconveyor on said frame for moving articles forwardly in said onedirection, a first pair of arms pivoted to said frame, a second pair ofarms pivoted respectively to said first pair of arms intermediate theends of said first pair of arms, a first wrapping roller extendingbetween said first pair of arms and journaled therein for wrapping asheet over said article, a second roller extending between said secondpair of arms and journaled therein for wrapping a sheet over saidarticle in a direction toward said first roller, said second rollerbeing positioned such as to be contacted by an article being conveyed bysaid conveyor whereby forward movement of said article causes movementof said rollers over the surface of said article, and means to alter thelength of said first pair of arms during operation of the apparatuswhereby said first roller follows the contour of said article during thewrapping thereof.
 5. The apparatus of claim 3 including means to preventrotation of said first roller in at least one direction during at leasta portion of the operation of the apparatus.
 6. The apparatus of claim 3in which said first arm comprises two links pivoted to each other. 7.The apparatus of claim 4 in which said means comprises said first pairof arms being jointed intermediate their length.